What we learned from South Carolina’s 52-20 loss to UGA

South Carolina was defeated, 52-20, by UGA in Athens on Saturday. There aren’t many positives the Gamecocks can take out of the beating, but we do know more about the team following this brutal loss.

Here are some takeaways:

The race in the SEC East is over for South Carolina:

With two division losses, South Carolina is out of the SEC East title picture. Although few people (if any) pegged the Gamecocks to win the division before the season, the fact that they’re out of contention in Week 3 is troubling. If South Carolina doesn’t address its problems, and fast, it may fail to qualify for a bowl this season.

No defense for old men:

South Carolina coach Steve Spurrier has earned a reputation as an offensive-minded coach, but that doesn’t mean his defenses at South Carolina have ever been truly bad. On the contrary, players such as Jadeveon Clowney, DJ Swearinger and Kelcy Quarles have driven the Gamecocks’ success over the past half-decade. But those players are all gone and have been replaced by less talented counterparts. Allowing Greyson Lambert — who started 0-for-7 against Vanderbilt last week — to complete 24 of his 25 passes and throw three touchdowns is a sure sign that there is something seriously wrong with this defensive unit. “We have to [get better],” South Carolina defensive coordinator Jon Hoke told Josh Kendall of The State after the game. “We have had moments where we have played good defense. They just didn’t happen tonight.”

Two quarterbacks and none:

There’s an old football adage that states: “If you have two quarterbacks, then you have none.” That pretty much describes South Carolina at this point in the season. The Gamecocks started former walk-on Perry Orth and turned to true freshman Lorenzo Nunez later in the game, but neither asserted himself as a reliable option. Orth was sporadic, completing 6 of his 17 passes for only 66 yards and a touchdown. Nunez had some success on the ground, rushing for 76 yards and a touchdown, but Spurrier seems reluctant to let the freshman throw. Nunez completed four of his five passes for only 18 yards.